]]>MLB Partners with Under Armour and Fanatics to Build on Global Growth and Drive Continued Passion for Baseball

BALTIMORE, MD (December 5, 2016) – Today, Under Armour (NYSE: UA, UA.C), Fanatics and Major League Baseball (MLB) announce a 10-year partnership that names the global performance brand as the official uniform provider to MLB, marking Under Armour’s first-ever professional league uniform deal. The three organizations joining together introduces a new revolutionary model defined by its vision for–and investment in–serving millions of fans and players at all stages of the game. The collaborative partnership will provide cutting-edge on-field apparel for players, as well as the most responsive and significant merchandise assortment ever available for fans.

Beginning in the 2020 MLB season, Under Armour will be the exclusive MLB provider of all on-field uniform components including jerseys featuring prominent Under Armour branding, baselayer, game-day outerwear, and year-round training apparel for all 30 MLB Clubs. Fanatics, a global leader of licensed sports merchandise, will be granted broad consumer product licensing rights to manage the manufacturing and distribution of Under Armour and Fanatics fan gear, which include jerseys at retail, name & number products and Postseason apparel. Under Armour and Fanatics expect to offer an assortment of new fan gear apparel and accessories at retail, prior to the 2020 season.

Under Armour’s mission of making all athletes better through passion, design and the relentless pursuit of innovation will be apparent through all aspects of this partnership. In addition to innovative on-field uniforms, Under Armour will provide exclusive Connected Fitness offerings to MLB teams, which will power and provide athletes with state-of-the-art technology designed to inform and strengthen player performance.

“Under Armour is proud of our long-standing relationship with MLB and we look forward to this exciting next chapter. This is a watershed moment for the Under Armour brand as this partnership with MLB and Fanatics furthers our collective dedication to bringing passion, energy and innovation to the game of baseball,” said Kevin Plank, Founder and CEO, Under Armour. “Under Armour’s goal is to engage and excite MLB’s incredibly diverse fan-base across America and around the world, and grow the game for the next generation of great athletes.”

The intensity, excitement and unscripted dramatic appeal of the game — demonstrated by another thrilling MLB postseason and the historic 2016 World Series — has driven global growth and popularity for MLB. Positioning a historic sport institution and its constant drive to expand fans’ access points to the game through technology innovation, alongside a young, fearless and driven sports brand and best-in-class licensing experts, provides enormous opportunity to grow every level of the game through this strategic partnership.

“We are excited to build on our partnership with Under Armour, a powerful global brand that continues to grow exponentially, and Fanatics, an industry leader in sports licensing,” said Commissioner Robert D. Manfred, Jr. “Under Armour’s marketing ability and brand status are a perfect fit to showcase our players and provide an even stronger connection between our game and its young fans and players. We appreciate Majestic’s many contributions to our clubs, players and fans throughout our partnership.”

“This partnership epitomizes our next-generation model which brings much-needed agility to the industry, enhancing both assortment and speed-to-market of MLB merchandise for teams, fans and retailers.” said Michael Rubin, executive chairman of Fanatics. “Both Fanatics and Under Armour get to do what each does best, while joining forces with an innovative and tech-savvy league to help grow the game of baseball through a pioneering new business model better suited to today’s digital economy.”

Under Armour is a well-established partner of MLB, dating back to 2000 as an official baselayer supplier. The brand took the field with their first baseball cleat collection in 2006 and became the official performance footwear partner of MLB in 2011. Under Armour currently has over 400 individual athlete partnerships across the major and minor leagues, including 2012 National League MVP Buster Posey, 2014 National League MVP and three-time National League Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw, 2015 National League MVP Bryce Harper, 2016 All-Star Game MVP Eric Hosmer and 2016 American League Cy Young Award winner Rick Porcello. Fanatics also has a long partnership history with MLB, dating back to 2002. This historic partnership will commence in the 2020 MLB season.

]]>Stanford Cardinalshttp://fanaticsinc.com/2016/12/02/stanford-cardinals/
Fri, 02 Dec 2016 18:40:55 +0000http://fanaticsinc.com/?p=4961The post Stanford Cardinals appeared first on fanatics inc.
]]>The post Stanford Cardinals appeared first on fanatics inc.
]]>‘Tis the season for 560,000 square feet of sports paraphernaliahttp://fanaticsinc.com/2016/11/29/tis-season-560000-square-feet-sports-paraphernalia/
Tue, 29 Nov 2016 15:48:18 +0000http://fanaticsinc.com/?p=4941The post ‘Tis the season for 560,000 square feet of sports paraphernalia appeared first on fanatics inc.
]]>The post ‘Tis the season for 560,000 square feet of sports paraphernalia appeared first on fanatics inc.
]]>USGA Launches New USGAShop.com, Offers 2017 U.S. Open Merchandisehttp://fanaticsinc.com/2016/11/29/usga-launches-new-usgashop-com-offers-2017-u-s-open-merchandise/
Tue, 29 Nov 2016 14:54:42 +0000http://fanaticsinc.com/?p=4952Nov. 29, 2016- The United States Golf Association (USGA) has reimagined its online shopping experience, expanding its product lines while making it easier for fans to find and purchase their favorite championship merchandise. The result is a new USGAshop.com that has been launched in collaboration with Fanatics, the global leader for licensed sports merchandise, complete…

]]>Nov. 29, 2016- The United States Golf Association (USGA) has reimagined its online shopping experience, expanding its product lines while making it easier for fans to find and purchase their favorite championship merchandise. The result is a new USGAshop.com that has been launched in collaboration with Fanatics, the global leader for licensed sports merchandise, complete with a new 24/7 customer support model and improved flat rate shipping costs.

The new site will serve as the apparel, headwear and gift headquarters for all 13 annual championships conducted by the USGA. Exclusive merchandise and accessories for the 2017 U.S. Open Championship, scheduled for June 15-18 at Erin Hills in Erin, Wis., have been released as well, featuring the distinctive Erin Hills logo.

“The relaunch of USGAshop.com combines merchandise collections across all USGA championships with a world-class customer shopping experience,” said Sarah Hirshland, USGA senior managing director of Business Affairs. “Our suite of sites provides golfers with expanded options and designs to match their passions and personal memories.”

Fans shopping the new and improved site will benefit from seamless desktop and mobile-optimized navigation, faster delivery options and a more streamlined end-to-end shopping experience.

Enhanced search technology will allow shoppers to more easily find items they want, with a significantly expanded inventory. The site will offer hundreds of products – including polos, outerwear, glassware, flags and golf hats – in time for the busy holiday season. Select USGA products will also be available through Fanatics’ worldwide fan portal.

The USGA has also launched USGAcardshop.com through its new relationship with greeting card and stationery specialist Viabella. More than 35 holiday card designs popular with USGA members and golf enthusiasts have been released, with standard message options and the ability to create personalized cards that include photos and messages. Starting in quantities of 20 cards per order and deliverable within a few business days, the secure ordering system is available to both consumers and businesses.

“The USGA’s golf-themed holiday cards are a long-standing tradition that allow golfers to share their passion for the game with friends and family while supporting the great work of the USGA,” said Hirshland. “Our new designs and personalization options bring a modern look and feel to a custom passed down through generations.”

The USGA has also reinvented USGApublications.com, the portal for ordering The Rules of Golf, Decisions on the Rules of Golf and other educational materials. In line with the Association’s commitment to sustainability, many of the USGA publications incorporate soy inks and are printed using solar- and wind-generated power sources through its relationship with Allied Printing, Inc. New to the website is the capability for individual consumers, as well as golf associations, golf facilities and schools and universities, to place orders online.

Additionally, shoppers looking to take home a piece of history can continue to purchase photographs from one of the most comprehensive collections of golf photography in the world. Visitors to the USGA Photo Store can shop from more than 500,000 timeless images, including original black-and-white prints from the beginning of golf and photography in the United States, as well as an extensive collection of contemporary images. Each year, more than 15,000 images are added to the collection from the USGA’s film library, championships and other assignments.

]]>ATLANTA and SILICON VALLEY – Fanatics, Inc., the global leader for licensed sports merchandise, and AMB Sports and Entertainment (AMBSE) today announced a long-term partnership to become the company’s official multichannel retail partner. This deal includes retail operations for events at Mercedes-Benz Stadium scheduled to open in summer 2017 that will serve as the home of the Atlanta Falcons and Major League Soccer’s (MLS) newest expansion team – Atlanta United FC.

Fanatics will also operate e-commerce for the Falcons and Atlanta United, creating a seamless multichannel retail experience for fans of both teams Both Fanatics and AMBSE share the philosophy that the best way to serve fans is by providing the largest assortment of options, priced fairly and inclusive of best-in-class customer service.

“The partnership with Fanatics provides us the ability to provide our fans with the best retail and shopping experience across channels,” says Mike Gomes, senior vice president of fan experience for AMB Sports and Entertainment. “Through the official online team store, we now offer a huge variety of products including one-of-a-kind t-shirts, jerseys and apparel not sold anywhere else. The expertise of Fanatics in operating team stores and physical retail locations ensures we have a best-in-class experience for our fans on game days.”

Fanatics has a proven track record operating e-commerce, in-venue and event retail across all the major sports leagues, global soccer and NCAA, while also operating on-site retail at several NFL and MLS stadiums.

“As a company rooted in providing best-in-class opportunities for fans to become closer with the teams, sports and players they love, Fanatics is proud to partner with AMBSE on this innovative multichannel retail offering,” said Gary Gertzog, president of business affairs for Fanatics. “We are honored to be an important part of the game day and event experience for all fans inside this new world class stadium”

Fans of the Falcons and Atlanta United, as well as anyone who takes in an event at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, will now have access to the largest selection of merchandise available at the most competitive, fair prices in the industry.

While Mercedes-Benz Stadium does not open until next year, select areas of the partnership have already begun – this fall Fanatics took over operation of the Falcons’ official online store, shop.Falcons.com, and is also currently running the online store for Atlanta United through Fanatics’ official ecommerce partnership with Major League Soccer.